I'm wondering if there's room to improve my TC and if it would be worth moving to the Bay area or somewhere else for example. It seems like TC in California is much higher than I ever realized TC is 140k, I'm a level 4 with PhD and 2 YOE. currently in Arizona. I'm a hardware engineer and work with RF (antennas RF circuits, radar) with some software development. Seems like there are relevant openings at Microsoft, Google, Facebook, etc. I'd also like to advance my career and go into an engineering leadership role and things move pretty slow here and it feels like innovation is also slow.
Yes you can improve your TC. The bloated Bay Area TCs are almost always for SWEs, not HWEs. As a HW engineer with your PhD and YOE, you could pull 180/20/50 = 250k at FAANG. In other companies, like Nvidia/Intel/AMD/Seagate/WD/HDW, and so on, you can expect 130-160 base + 15-20k bonus + 20-40k RSU ~ 165-220k. Considering the cost of living, insane rent/housing market, taxes, traffic, living life in the fast lane, daily stresses, I don’t think it’s worth it. If you’re single, and don’t care too much about WLB, and want higher TC, come to the Bay Area and switch jobs every 3-4 years. Good luck. Don’t assume that you can make 300-500k salaries you see on Blind with your background. Sorry to be blunt but that’s the reality. Not impossible but very unlikely.
Thanks, this information is very helpful. I'm at a 130k base with 15k sign on (with extended hour pay if I work more than 40 hrs a week). I don't think it would be worth the cost of living and life style change for a Max of 180k base pay. I pay $750/mo on my mortgage, seems like the increase would all be sucked up very quickly into the increased rent. However I don't get any company equity which could be a major benefit if I want to get in for 4 years then leave the area.
I think if you’re situation allows you a 4 year stint in the Bay Area (so all of your RSUs get vested), then you should give it a try. Good luck.
Amazon has an office in Phoenix, pays the same as Seattle and 10% less than the bay area.
That subject is not a question